Australian chef Skgy Gyngell didn’t just name her favorite spots in London—she told the story behind each bite. In a recent feature by The Glossary Magazine, Gyngell laid out her seven go-to restaurants: Cycene, The River Café, Sumi, Lyle’s, Quo Vadis, Manteca, and Burnt. But this wasn’t just a list. It was a manifesto. Each choice reflects her eight-year commitment to Fern Varrow farm, a quiet patch of land just outside London where figs, kumquats, and herbs grow for her restaurant Spring. And it’s that farm—not Michelin stars or trendy decor—that steers her entire culinary compass.
The Farm That Feeds the Table
Spring opened in 2017 with a radical idea: no fixed menu. Instead, a daily "Scratch menu" built entirely around what Fern Varrow delivered that morning. "It gives us a connection and a purpose," Gyngell told Edible LA in November 2025. "It defines the way we cook and think about food." Servers in bell skirts glide through the white-walled dining room, delivering dishes that taste like seasons turned inside out—bright, earthy, surprising. The public didn’t just notice—they responded. "Incredibly receptive," she called it. And that’s the quiet revolution: no gimmicks, no Instagrammable plating for its own sake. Just ingredients that know where they came from.
That partnership with Fern Varrow isn’t a marketing tactic. It’s the rhythm of her life. She visits the farm weekly. Talks to the growers. Tastes the kumquats before they’re turned into liqueur. And yes, she still remembers the first time she tasted a fig from that soil. "It tasted like summer held in your hand," she once wrote in A Year in My Kitchen. That’s the standard now.
London’s Quiet Stars
Her London picks aren’t the usual suspects. No celebrity chef temples. No velvet ropes. Cycene? A tiny, no-reservations spot in Shoreditch where the chef works with foraged seaweed and wild garlic. Lyle’s? A temple of precision, where vegetables are treated like main characters. Manteca? A cozy, candlelit haven for offal and handmade pasta that tastes like nonna’s kitchen in Bologna. And Burnt? A place so unassuming you’d walk past it—if you didn’t know the chef once worked under Gyngell at Spring.
"These aren’t restaurants you go to for a night out," she explained. "They’re places you go to remember why you eat." Even The River Café, a London institution since 1987, feels different under her lens—not as a landmark, but as a living archive of British ingredients done right.
Paris: A Culinary Renaissance
When Gyngell talks about Paris, her voice changes. "My favourite city for a weekend away," she says. Not because of the Eiffel Tower, but because of Septime—a restaurant so coveted, you have to book exactly at 10 a.m. every day for the next three weeks. "It’s almost impossible," she laughs, "but worth every sleepless night." She’s stayed in Pigalle and Marais for years, drawn to the 9th and 11th arrondissements where a new wave of chefs are reviving French cooking after what she calls "years of laziness."
"French food had become predictable," she told SheerLuxe. "Now? It’s alive again. There’s fire in the kitchen again." She’s planning a trip this spring with her daughter, staying at Le Pigalle and visiting the Pinault Collection at Bourse de Commerce in Les Halles. "It’s not just food," she says. "It’s culture breathing again."
From Mallorca to Manhattan
On the island of Mallorca, she rents a house called Son Ru, near La Residencia hotel, and heads straight to Patiki Beach in Soller. Chef Grace Berrow serves dishes that taste like the Mediterranean sun—grilled octopus with wild fennel, citrus salads that make you close your eyes. "Wonderful," is all Gyngell says. "Just... wonderful."
In New York, her picks are more personal. Estela, King, and Via Carota—all West Village staples where she’s friends with the chefs. "I visit many of them," she says. "It’s not just dining. It’s family." But she’s clear: "I never want to stay more than three or four days. It’s exhausting. So high-octane. But it reinvigorates me."
Why This Matters
Gyngell isn’t just a chef. She’s a bridge. Between Australia’s sun-drenched, ingredient-first ethos and Britain’s quiet, soil-rooted traditions. Between the farm and the fine dining room. Between generations of cooks who believe food should tell a story—not just feed you.
Her influence stretches beyond menus. At Heckfield Place, where she’s culinary director, she’s reshaped an entire estate’s relationship with food. Gardens were planted. Poultry raised. Honey harvested. It’s not a restaurant. It’s a way of life. And it’s catching on.
"People are tired of being sold something," she told Edible LA. "They want to know where it came from. Who grew it. How it was treated. That’s not a trend. That’s hunger. Real hunger."
What’s Next?
She’s working on her next cookbook—tentatively titled Where the Food Lives—which will trace the journey of ingredients from soil to plate across continents. Meanwhile, Spring continues its Scratch menu, now in its eighth year. No changes planned. No expansions. Just more figs. More kumquats. More quiet, deliberate cooking.
"I don’t need to be everywhere," she says. "I just need to be here. With the farm. With the food. With the people who care enough to ask."
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes Spring restaurant’s Scratch menu so special?
Spring’s Scratch menu, launched in 2017, changes daily based on what’s harvested from Fern Varrow farm—no fixed dishes, no pre-planned courses. This approach eliminates waste, celebrates seasonality, and creates a direct link between the diner and the land. The public response has been so strong that it’s become a model for sustainable British dining, influencing dozens of other restaurants to adopt similar farm-driven models.
Why does Skye Gyngell consider Paris a culinary revival?
After years of what Gyngell describes as "laziness" in French cooking, chefs in Paris’s 9th and 11th arrondissements have rekindled innovation—focusing on local produce, traditional techniques, and bold simplicity. Restaurants like Septime, which she calls "one of the best in the world," exemplify this shift: humble interiors, hyper-seasonal menus, and an almost spiritual attention to detail that’s redefining modern French cuisine.
How long has Fern Varrow farm been supplying Spring?
Fern Varrow farm has been supplying Spring for eight continuous years, since the restaurant opened in 2017. The partnership is deeply personal: Gyngell visits weekly, collaborates on planting schedules, and even helps harvest ingredients like kumquats used in house-made liqueurs. This isn’t a supplier-client relationship—it’s a shared mission rooted in soil, season, and sustainability.
What’s the connection between Australian food culture and Gyngell’s cooking?
Gyngell’s Australian roots inform her approach: a relaxed, ingredient-led philosophy that values freshness over formality. Edible LA notes Australia as a "food mecca with a California sensibility," and Gyngell brings that same ease to British dining—emphasizing texture, balance, and natural flavors rather than rigid technique. Her cookbooks, like My Favorite Ingredients, reflect this blend of global influence and local honesty.
Why does Gyngell avoid staying longer than four days in New York?
Though she loves the energy and friendships in New York—especially at restaurants like Via Carota and Estela—Gyngell finds the city’s pace draining. "It’s exhausting, so high-octane," she says. But paradoxically, that intensity recharges her creatively. Her short stays are intentional: enough to feel inspired, not enough to burn out. It’s a rhythm she applies to all her travels.
What’s the significance of Heckfield Place in Gyngell’s career?
As culinary director of Heckfield Place, Gyngell transformed the historic estate into a living food ecosystem—planting orchards, raising livestock, and building a kitchen that sources almost everything on-site. It’s not just a restaurant; it’s a demonstration of what sustainable, place-based dining can look like at scale. Her work there has made Heckfield Place a pilgrimage site for chefs and food lovers seeking authenticity beyond the Michelin guide.
